Then I Will Stay
by Suzumiya Yuki
Summary: Nia x Yoko Part two in my Yuri series. Takes place a few days after Nia and Yoko get to good terms with each other.


**The Yuri Series**

**- II -**

**Nia x Yoko**

**Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann**

Yoko woke up to an alien feeling. A feeling so pleasant to wake up to, it was alien to her. She always woke up with a totally different feeling than she did now. This realisation made her open her eyes lazily and stare un-focusing.

She was laying on her side facing the wall and the sight that greeted her eyes made her pause- consider whether she was dead and in heaven or not. There was an angel lying in front of her. How she was sure it was an angel, well, it was the face that met her eyes.

Sometime, Yoko was not sure how much, passed by as she did nothing but stare at the face. The eyelids in front of Yoko slowly began to open as if sensing the burning stare. Soon, Golden eyes found them selves staring into pink flower shaped pupils - A four clover flower.

"Good morning Yoko-san. How are you feeling this morning?" Nia greeted with a bright smile. She didn't look at all like a person who has been sleeping. She was fresh as a flower in the early morning sun. Yoko was brought back to earth at that moment.

"Ah…Go…Good morning to you too Nia." Yoko stammered. Yes, the person in her bed was none other than their newest member Nia - The tragic girl that was discarded by her father, literary, in a dumb as garbage. The same man that was their ultimate enemy they were going after – The Spiral King.

"How are you feeling this morning Yoko-san? Are you feeling any better now?" Nia's voice was filled with concern now. Yes, that was right, Nia had come to Yoko's room last night to bring her dinner and she had found the girl crying.

Nia had asked questions then and despite Yoko trying to fend her off, saying that she was alright, the young girl insisted. Yoko had already reached her limits and didn't have enough resolve left to fight her sorrows alone anymore. Yoko had then let her heart out to the offered comfort and cried for the first time ever since Kamina's death.

Nia had comforted her and even let the young woman cry on her shoulder. Also, there was something else that happened later on in the night - Something that now made Yoko feel strange and quite embarrassed - A feeling similar to that time when she was with Kamina under the light of the full moon. This strange event was what had silenced her cries at last and washed away all her thoughts – Thoughts of Kamina and everything else.

The girl Nia had kissed Yoko last night. Now that Yoko thought about it, she wasn't sure why the girl did it and she doubted Nia did too. Yoko's mind was so gone that she couldn't clearly remember what happened between that and them getting into bed.

It was when they were under covers already, that Yoko's mind decided to click once again. At this time she remembered that she might have said something for Nia was saying this; "See Yoko-san, I am not going anywhere. I will stay here with you as long as you need, Okay?"

"You promise to not leave me?" She remembered pleading. She also remembered holding onto Nia like a life line – Not wanting the girl to disappear like 'he' had. Yoko came back to her senses now and remembered that the girl was waiting for her to answer her question. "Yes Nia, I am fine now. Thank you for last night. I guess I was wrong about getting over these kinds of problems by oneself."

Yoko felt her cheeks colour in embarrassment and shame at the realisation of her mistakes. She didn't know why but she felt like she had lost points of what, she didn't have a clue.

"No Yoko-san, I was wrong too. I got into your and Simon's personal matters like that. I didn't even know anything about you yet I acted like that. I am sorry." Nia looked really sorry and Yoko felt the urge to caress her cheek and make her know that she wasn't in the wrong at all. It was this time that Yoko realised that her arm was around the small of Nia's waist. A memory from last night came to her as she clung to Nia like a scared child does to their mother's safe bosom and she coloured even worse than before.

Yoko realised too the short of the distance she and Nia had from each other. The bed as small as it was, had their bent knees intertwined with each others and their heads only centimetres away from each other. Yoko got off the bed faster than Nia could gasp - her heart racing.

"We…We had better hurry up or we will be late for breakfast." Yoko stammered quickly as she made her way to the bath room to freshen up in fast paces, her face on fire. Once she got there, Yoko willed her heart to calm down as she looked herself over in the wall mirror. She was a mess. Her hair was all crude and her face…Jesus…How could anyone want to kiss her when she looked like she did! The memory of the kiss last night came to her mind and Yoko was sure her heart wasn't normal to withstand such pulse speeds.

'Damn it, why am I feeling this way? Not even my kiss with Kamina made me feel like this. Kamina…" The thought of the proud and great man made Yoko want to break down again. 'No, I can't do that. I promised Nia that I would be alright. What would she think if she saw me like this? Wait a minute…When did I start living for Nia?!' Yoko was confused by her thoughts. She lost herself in her thoughts as she considered that…

…………………………………….

Later at breakfast, everyone in the room was looking in Yoko's direction. This time around, the stares were different from the usual. This time, there was that extra bit of confusion and wonder. Even when she got her share and moved to her usual table in the back, she felt eyes still on her.

Yoko placed her tray on the table and took a seat. Another tray joined hers at her side. "Nia, what are you doing? You don't have to follow me anywhere. Don't you usually sit with Simon anyway?" Yoko whispered to the multi-colour-haired girl. Nia had not left her side since they left her room. When Yoko went to visit Leeron, Nia was there. When she went to visit the remaining patients from the previous incident, the girl was there with her. Even when Yoko had thought that the girl might stay with Simon when they went to greet him, all Nia did was say goodbye to him like she had done the others. Yoko had really wanted to be alone – What with the confusing feelings she was having for the same girl.

Nia leaned closer to the side to be closer to Yoko and whispered back. "But Yoko-san, you asked me not to leave you alone last night. You made me promise to be by your side and not leave, remember?" The girl wondered if Yoko had that short term of a memory. Perhaps she wasn't okay after all. There was no way then to leave Yoko-san alone. She was still needed.

"Ye…Yeah, I guess I did but…" Yoko didn't know what to say. To tell the truth, she really didn't want the girl to leave for some reason. She decided that she can live with that. But exactly what did she say last night that she didn't clearly remember?! The others were probably confused by there actions. Yoko acting stranger than she did and Nia, who wasn't seen anywhere away from Simon was now around Yoko. What was going on?

Well, Yoko did feel more comfortable around Nia than any other people. Not even the sisters were this close to her. It might have been because Nia broke through her walls while others stayed away from it except Leeron. The girl had persisted and Yoko felt betrayed when her heart allowed Nia through. If she was being honest with herself, Yoko knew that she hadn't let Kamina in as deep as she was letting Nia in.

It didn't help matters that last night when Yoko was at her breaking point, Nia had come to her rescue. Yoko had been struggling alone since she was young and she had never depended on anyone - No one at all until last night that is. She didn't fear letting Nia inside and even now, Yoko was not afraid of what Nia would do to it. After all, it was Nia who had saved it so wasn't it only fitting for Yoko's heart to belong to Nia?! What was she saying, really? What happened to her last night? Yoko found that she had asked herself that question more times than necessary. She decided to let the thing over now and proceeded on her breakfast all the while listening to Nia's stories from when she was with the Spiral King.

…………………………………

Two hours later found Yoko and Nia by themselves. Yoko had gone up to the deck to repeat her morning ritual of cleaning her trusty rifle – Now named Kamina – and Nia of course tagged along. She felt for a part and it came to her hand. Now Nia had taken to passing Yoko the parts that she needed too. "Here you go Yoko-san." Nia said as she handed Yoko the part she was reaching for.

After the cleaning was done, Yoko laid Kamina down on the other side of her and let him sock in the morning sun with them. Yoko then leaned back on her hands and looked up to the star filled sky. It was so clear that even now as the sun was out you could see the stars. No pollutions or any of the sorts to block the view.

Some time passed by as Nia joined her into her hobby. Yoko decided to let out what she wanted to say. "Nia, I may have said some pretty selfish things last night but I wasn't in my right mind. You don't have to abide by them so…" She trailed off lamely suddenly losing her courage.

"It is al right Yoko-san. It was my decision too and I want to be there for you as I was for Simon…" Nia frowned." No…Not like Simon because he didn't ask for my help. Well, you didn't too but I saw it in your eyes. I couldn't abandon you when you needed me. And don't dismiss what you said last night. Those words came from your heart and the heart doesn't lie." There was an angry note in Nia's voice then that startled Yoko.

Well, it was true that she wasn't thinking last night. Her mind was very far from her body - The strength of the mind not enough to withstand the heartache. Nia wasn't done talking though. "I will stay with you until your heart tells me that you no longer need me. But I don't want to be pressing to. If you tell me to leave you and you mean it, even if your heart isn't healed, I will go. Even now I will if you want me to – Really want me to." Nia said this but her words were breaking as she went on. She didn't know why but she wanted to be useful to Yoko-san. If Yoko asked her to leave now..

"Nia…" Yoko was truck speechless. She searched deep into her soul and all the answers she got back were NO! NO and more NO! No, don't let her leave. Don't lose her too like you lost your family and him. She didn't think that she would ever stop needing Nia. Was that alright though? Was she being fair to Nia? No, that didn't matter, what mattered was that she needed the girl now. She had never depended on anyone before until her. 'What are you doing to me Nia?'

While lost in her thoughts, Yoko didn't know that she had been leaning forward. Bu the time she realised this, her lips had already closed on the half developed ones of the girl below her. Even as this realisation came, Yoko didn't pull away. She simply let her arms go around the mysterious girl that wound her threads on Yoko's Heart. It might have been because when Yoko opened her eyes, she stared not into scared ones but warm inviting ones. Or it might have been Nia putting her arms around her neck to pull her in closer.

After a breathless moment Yoko pulled her head back enough to speak. "I don't want you to leave Nia. I don't want you to ever leave me. It sounds selfish and I know that you can leave whenever you want but this is how I feel. I am…sorry." Yoko looked down. She began to let go of Nia but felt her arms being held in place and looked into unnatural eyes. There was something different about them too…

"Then I will stay…Yoko-san."

E…….…..…N…………….D

To Be Continued…

**NEXT: Kagami x Konata**

**A/N: **Hi ya, I am thinking of making a sequel to this as of when 7 years later. And yes, Yoko actually gets quite flustered easily, at least where Nia was concerned…Remember the Crab meal incident?

Ja ne…

6


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